[RPG]: [Horror Week] Kult: Beyond the Veil, reviewed by Andrew Montgomery (5/4)

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/13/13361.phtml

Andrew Montgomery's Summary:

With a long-standing reputation as one of horror gaming's darkest entires, Kult is a striking engine for creating truly horrific tales.

Go to the full review for more information.

[capnzapp]

Thank you for an excellent review of my favorite rpg. You managed to be both thorough, descriptive, explanatory, and honest! Good job!

[Andrew Montgomery]

Originally Posted by capnzapp

Thank you for an excellent review of my favorite rpg. You managed to be both thorough, descriptive, explanatory, and honest! Good job!

Thank you. I usually find the toughest critics are the fans, so this is high praise indeed.

[Andrew Montgomery]

Just wanted to add, the review side bar says I've written only one review. Actually, I've written a whole slew of RuneQuest reviews, one for the Saga Edition Star Wars game, one for HeroQuest, and one (as just "Drew") for the d20 Cthulhu. Thought it was worth mentioning because on a larger scale, I think my review of Kult was more favorable than many others.

[MeMeMe]

I agre with Capnzapp. An outstanding review, hitting on many of the points taht has made this one of my all-time favourite games. Just a shame I can't find any other horror fanatics to play it with...

[Andrew Montgomery]

Originally Posted by MeMeMe

I agre with Capnzapp. An outstanding review, hitting on many of the points taht has made this one of my all-time favourite games. Just a shame I can't find any other horror fanatics to play it with...

I'd love to run it. But I am in Tokyo.

[capnzapp]

One aspect I particularly "like", is how KULT doesn't get obsolete by recent world affairs.

If anything, the (rather pessimistic) conspiracy theorist in me says this game will only become more relevant as time goes by. The bleaker the future (clash of civilizations, environmental damage*, food/water/population issues etc) the more fertile ground for this puppy, whose "behind the scenes" metastory really REALLY thrives on human folly (be that the raze of Cartage, the Holocaust or simply a case of horrific domestic violence).

This in contrast to, say, Delta Green for Call of Cthulhu. While that is nothing but an excellent game it does suffer from being quite firmly entrenched in its time period (which would be the nineties, or at least, the pre-9/11 intelligence scene).

I'm just saying it's nice to invest in a game which is as relevant as ever, even if it was originally written before the fall of the Berlin Wall...

*) granted, it doesn't explore this theme (as it wasn't on anyone's radar back then), but it would be very easy indeed to get inspired by its themes to tweak some monster's agenda and back-story to take it in account.

[Spirit_Crusher]

Very good review;Kult is probably my favourite game, and witnessing it get some love is a pleasure.
Only one little correction...in the review you forget to explain that raising mental balance makes you more detatched, and so less human.By only saying that you emanate a positive aura, it seems that you become something like a Chatolic saint, while in truth you are just slaughtering your emotional and instinctive side, becoming a being of pure reason.
There's no "power of good" in Kult...raising mental balance makes you a cold, uncaring bastard, and by lowering it you become a beast with intellect, though twisted.

[Andrew Montgomery]

Originally Posted by Spirit_Crusher

Very good review;Kult is probably my favourite game, and witnessing it get some love is a pleasure.
Only one little correction...in the review you forget to explain that raising mental balance makes you more detatched, and so less human.By only saying that you emanate a positive aura, it seems that you become something like a Chatolic saint, while in truth you are just slaughtering your emotional and instinctive side, becoming a being of pure reason.
There's no "power of good" in Kult...raising mental balance makes you a cold, uncaring bastard, and by lowering it you become a beast with intellect, though twisted.

True...partially. Don't forget than mental balance can also be increased by the posssession of positive mental traits...Altruism, Chivalry, Code of Honor, Forgiving, etc. This is what I wanted to emphasize about the game...it is what you make of it. By creating an extremely humanistic, compassionate character, you can have a high mental balance. But if you want to focus on the darker nature of the game, you can (as you said) go for the detatched, cold, pefectionist.

But your ultimate point, I think, is that good and evil are not absolutes in the game. In this, I think your assessment is dead on.

[Andrew Montgomery]

Originally Posted by capnzapp

One aspect I particularly "like", is how KULT doesn't get obsolete by recent world affairs.

If anything, the (rather pessimistic) conspiracy theorist in me says this game will only become more relevant as time goes by. The bleaker the future (clash of civilizations, environmental damage*, food/water/population issues etc) the more fertile ground for this puppy, whose "behind the scenes" metastory really REALLY thrives on human folly (be that the raze of Cartage, the Holocaust or simply a case of horrific domestic violence).

This in contrast to, say, Delta Green for Call of Cthulhu. While that is nothing but an excellent game it does suffer from being quite firmly entrenched in its time period (which would be the nineties, or at least, the pre-9/11 intelligence scene).

I'm just saying it's nice to invest in a game which is as relevant as ever, even if it was originally written before the fall of the Berlin Wall...

*) granted, it doesn't explore this theme (as it wasn't on anyone's radar back then), but it would be very easy indeed to get inspired by its themes to tweak some monster's agenda and back-story to take it in account.

Kult's <i>raison d' etre</i> has worked for 2000 years, assuming the Gnostic root of the game. I think this contributes to its timelessness.